An Endless Red Scarf
by angelgirlsko12
Summary: "Armin's like a brother to me." "But he's not even really your brother!" "Neither are you." Green-Eyed Monster: When Eren tells Mikasa to stop treating him like a baby brother (again), she starts babying Armin instead. Various stories revolving around Eren and Mikasa. 3/(12?)
1. Love Sick

**Love Sick**

Armin never thought a simple case of the common cold would reveal so much about his friends.

* * *

The third day, they finally show up.

"Glad to see you're feeling better, Mikasa," Armin says, as he closes the book he's reading. She gives him a faint smile as she sniffles slightly and buries her face in her scarf.

"Thanks," she whispers.

"Yeah, well, she's still sneezing, though," Eren says, almost defensively. "You probably shouldn't get too close to her if you don't want to get sick."

"Mmmkay," he replies slowly, resisting the urge to point out that _Eren_ is the one standing in close proximity to her. Not that that matters or anything.

His thoughts are interrupted when—sure enough—Mikasa sneezes. Delicately, and in great resemblance to the high-pitched squeak of a mouse. "Well, I could have stayed home another day," Mikasa blandly states, "but Eren insisted that we come see you today, Armin."

"You didn't _have_ to come with me," Eren shoots back. "I don't need you following me everywhere."

Mikasa sneezes again, before crossing her arms and retorting, "You practically dragged me out of the house."

"_No I didn't_." Eren looks back at her with gritted teeth. "I merely _asked_ you if you wanted to come with me."

"_Achoo!—_Well, you sure have a—_achoo!_—strange way of asking…"

"Come to think of it, Eren, why _didn't_ you just come out while Mikasa was sick? Since you don't want her following you, I mean."

"My mom said I should stay and keep her company."

"_Achoo!—_Liar," Mikasa sniffles. "She told you to go out a-and—_achoo!—_play so you wouldn't catch it, too. Plus, I was sleeping half the time."

"Shut up, Mikasa."

"She does have a point, Eren. What, you've just been watching her sleep these last few days?"

"…"

It was a joke, but as Eren's face turns redder, Armin realizes that he might not have been that far off.

Mikasa chuckles, gently. "Actually, I couldn't even get to sleep with him around. He sat there and kept trying to talk to m—"

"_Mikasa!_"

"_Achoo!_" This time her sneeze doesn't sound as convincing.

"Oh, is that so, Mikasa?" Armin smirks.

"Y-yeah—_achoo!—_you should h-hear the things he—_achoo!—_says when he thinks I'm asleep…"

"_That's it!"_ Eren says with balled fists, his green eyes narrowing as they meet her onyx ones. "The next time you get sick, I'm not even going to care a bit. And you know what, gimme back my scarf!" He lunges for the red material around her neck, but she effortlessly evades him.

Armin reopens his book to where he had left off, watching as Mikasa takes off—running remarkably fast despite her physical ailment—and the visibly incensed Eren trails behind.

They don't show up for another three days, and Armin doesn't question it. He knows his assumption is right when the two of them do show, and Eren can't stop sneezing.


	2. Mirror, Mirror

**Mirror, Mirror**

Mikasa has doubts about herself as she stares at her reflection in the mirror.

(A fictional situation in which the members of the 104th Squad attend a banquet/party-type thing)

* * *

"Mikasa, what's taking you so long? I'm so ready to go and EAT."

"Seriously, we're all ready except for you."

"Guys, stop it. Let her take as long as she needs."

"Isn't it obvious? Clearly, she wants to be perfect for Jaeger."

And she's right, Mikasa thinks, as she stands in front of the mirror and ponders whether Eren would like it better if she covered up the scar on her face or just leave it be. _He always sees me with my natural face anyways…But should I cover it so he won't be reminded of how I got the scar? _She stares into her almond-shaped eyes, reflected back in the mirror. _What about eyeliner? Bigger eyes are cuter, right? _Her gaze shifts to her lips. _Should they be redder? Fuller? Shouldn't I use something? After all, no one would want to kiss dry, cracked lips…I think?_

Her hair is a whole other problem.

_It's too short, _she sighs, fussing with the stray strands. She wishes it were longer._ I look like a boy. But Eren's the one who told me to cut it…so I guess he likes it shorter? Or was that really because it'd get in the way during training? In any case, maybe I should do it differently…Agh, but it's too short for that. Maybe Christa has a barrette or something? Anything?_

And the dress, too.

It's red, the same red as the scarf around her neck. It drapes her body delicately and reaches to the floor. _Is it too long? Would he prefer I wear something shorter?_ She tugs at the scarf. _Should I wear this scarf, even? Is it weird to wear a scarf with something so formal? But if I don't, maybe he'll think I don't appreciate it anymore._ She places her hands on her hips as she looks at herself in the mirror, and notices the way her well-defined abs are semi-visible through the fabric of the dress. _Is that weird? I should have picked something less tight around the middle…_

"Maybe I should wear something else…"

Ymir gives an exasperated sigh.

"Mikasa, you're fine! You already look pretty," Sasha says impatiently. It's obvious from the look in her eyes that she's more than ready to go get food.

"Yeah! You're totally going to make all the boys swoon," Christa giggles.

"Jean won't be able to take his eyes off of you," Ymir remarks sarcastically.

They laugh at that. Even Annie fails to hide her amusement.

_"You look beautiful, Mikasa."_

She turns at the sudden male voice amidst the group of girls. There is Eren, dressed in a nice button down shirt and black slacks. _He looks beautif—er—handsome, too._

"…Thanks." She blushes, red enough to match her scarf. He smiles back for what seems to her like an eternity.

"_EREN. JAEGER_. Of _ALL_ guys to come _WALTZING_ into the girls' room uninvited, I did _NOT_ expect it to be you! You're lucky none of us were in the middle of changing!"

Mikasa watches as Christa and Sasha push Eren towards the door. "S-sorry! I just wanted to ask Mikasa something! I didn't think you guys would be—"

"You can ask her when she's done getting ready," Christa offers, smiling sweetly before closing the door on him. "'Kay, Mikasa, we can head out whenever you're—"

She turns back around to see Mikasa, clutch in hand and shoes already on, walking towards the door in front of her. There's a certain confidence in her stride and posture that wasn't there before.

_"I'm ready."_


	3. Green-Eyed Monster

**Green-Eyed Monster**

When Eren tells Mikasa to stop treating him like a baby brother (again), she starts babying Armin instead.

* * *

_"I'm not your little brother! So stop treating me like one!"_

She looks back at him, hurt, yet there's something different about her indifferent stare this time. Eren sees it, and yet chooses to overlook it when she lets go of his wrist. Instead, he is relieved that she whispers, "fine," and walks away. _Maybe this time she means it_, he thinks. _Maybe this time, she'll finally let me protect her, instead. Maybe she'll finally let me be a man, instead of the boy she always has to look after._

He thinks nothing of it when Mikasa doesn't sit next to him at breakfast the next morning. Or lunch.

He _does_, however, notice the familiar looking red scarf around Armin's neck.

_"Armin. Why. Are. You. Wearing. Mikasa's. SCARF!?"_

He blinks blankly back at Eren. "Hmm? Oh, she gave it to me."

_No, really_. "Why?"

Armin shrugs, and Eren is irritated even more by his apparent oblivion. "I don't know. I mean, I was shivering during training earlier, so maybe she gave it to me because of that?" He readjusts the red material around his neck. "It's really warm, you know. I can see why she wears it all the time."

_Of COURSE I know—I'm the one who gave it to her, you idiot!_

Armin ignores the fact that Eren is practically fuming beside him.

* * *

Eren is further aggravated when he sees Mikasa asking Armin to be her sparring partner. _She never spars with Armin. He won't even stand a chance against her. Why would she want to fight him?_

He continues staring, and is in disbelief because Mikasa isn't even trying. She just sort of evades Armin, who doesn't appear to be trying hard, either (though perhaps he is, and just…isn't very good at it).

Reiner shouts something to him, and he refocuses on his own sparring practice.

* * *

He doesn't see it happen, but from the way Armin is holding his wrist in pain and Mikasa is apologizing profusely…

"I'm so, so sorry, Armin! I don't know what I was thinking…Does it hurt? I'll take you to the infirmary."

Eren thinks nothing of it until she picks Armin up bridal-style and starts walking away.

_What…WHAT IS THIS!? Can't he walk on his own!?_

* * *

Armin appears at dinnertime with a bandaged arm. Mikasa trails behind him.

_Well, at least she didn't carry him in._

That thought is short-lived.

She feeds Armin his supper and engages him in friendly conversation, and Eren isn't even sure what he's feeling anymore. It's a mixture of anger and longing and sadness at the same time, and he doesn't want to believe it's what he thinks it is.

He finally gets a chance to talk to her when Armin excuses himself to go the bathroom. "Why have you been so protective of Armin lately!?"

She doesn't even bother to look up at him. "Armin's like a brother to me."

"But he's not even really your brother!"

She turns her head slowly to give him her cool, calculating look.

"Neither are you."

_Ouch_.

Armin comes back, looking carefree as ever, and he sits next to Mikasa and starts talking to her as if nothing is wrong in the world. And Eren knows, then, what it is that he feels.

_Jealousy._

* * *

After supper, he races to catch up with her. "Mikasa!"

She doesn't hear him, or doesn't stop to acknowledge it if she does. "Mikasa!"

She finally turns, slowly. "What do you need, Eren?"

"Look—about what I said—about not being your little brother—"

"It's fine," she states. "You're right, anyways."

"No, I'm not. I mean, we—we're still family—"

"Are we?" She counters. "Tell me, do you really think of me as your sister?"

He pauses a bit.

_No_, he thinks, honestly. _No, Mikasa's not my sister. She's the girl I saved once. The girl who, since then, has saved me more times than I can count; the one who's always got my back. The one I want to protect, who ends up protecting me. The girl who I'm not strong enough, or smart enough, or smooth enough to ever even THINK of_—

He's so lost in his thoughts that he doesn't notice that Mikasa has bridged the gap between their faces so that their breaths intermingle, puffs of warmth in the coldness of the outside air.

"I don't think of you as my little brother," she breathes, softly.

Eren becomes very aware of her hands on his shoulders.

"If I did, would I…" She hesitates.

From their current proximity, Eren finally understands, and knows where this is going. He smirks. "…do this?"

He kisses her gently, and his focus shifts to her lips on his, and how warm and soft and _right_ they feel. She kisses him back with such ferocity that he knows at once there is _absolutely no way_ she sees him as a little brother.

_We're not family, technically_, he manages to think. But he'd like to think that someday, when all of this is over, they will be.

* * *

Armin spots them in the passing, though they don't notice him. He smiles.

"Well, guess I won't need this anymore." He unravels the crimson scarf around his neck to look at it. _The scarf. The red that ties Eren and Mikasa's future together, for better or for worse._ He ponders how such an ordinary article of clothing could hold so much meaning.

A cold wind drifts by. Armin shivers.

"On the other hand, it _is_ a very warm scarf…"

He wraps it back around himself with his bandaged arm and continues on his merry way, hoping that Mikasa and Eren will be too wrapped up in each other to come looking for it anytime soon.


End file.
